TERRACAN SUSPENSION UPGRADE • Trek’N’Tow V Ironman Upgrade • Improves Towing Ability • Less Bounce Per Ounce

4WD EQUIPMENT

HYUNDAI TERRACAN SUSPENSION UPGRADE • Trek’n’Tow v Ironman upgrade • Improves towing ability • Less bounce per ounce

R PPE RT PE ROBE RAPHY BY

RT & PHOTOG REPO

n today’s age of plastic softies, touring the four-speed auto is adequate but hardly the Terracan’s suspension 4WDers can find a lot to like about 2006 standard, its seven-seat layout is dated, Terracan’shas come undersuspension re has the Terracan.n today’s It’s age got of low plastic range, softies, an touringHighlander 4WDers models can findcan’t a locklot to their like centre about diffthe for being too bouncy. LSD, suspensionTerracan. It’s capable got low of range, decent an LSD,in high suspension range and capable the handling of decent isn’t articulation, a strong come under re for being articulation,recovery recovery hooks, hooks, a powerful a powerful but frugal point. turbodiesel Much of and that its isboxy due shape to the means suspension, there’s tooOverlander bouncy. Overlanderlooks at two but frugala turbodieseldecent amount and its of boxy room shape inside. whichAll this we for at around Overlander $40,000 have with regularly a five-year and upgrades designed to I means there’s a warrantydecent amount and decent of room build inside. quality. heavily criticised in the past, so when Ironman looks at two upgrades All this for aroundOf $40,000 course, nowith car a isfive-year perfect andtold while us about the Terracan their Terracan is no softroader suspension it kit lacks we give the thrifty Hyundai designed to give the thriftywarranty I andclearance, decent build the four-speed quality. auto is adequatewere butimmediately hardly the interested. 2006 standard, its seven- a more solid ride. Of course,seat no layout car is is perfectdated, Highlander and while themodels can’tThe lockstory their started centre back diff in in late high 2005 range when and Hyundai a more solid ride.Terracan isthe no handling softroader isn’t it lacksa strong clearance, point. Much Ironman of that began is due to to receive the suspension, a number of which requests we

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Pick a fuel at Overlander have regularly and heavily suspension are inter-related and changes to Terracans out for a test. 3 criticised in the past, so when Ironman told us one part mean changes to the others. Stiffer The Ironman Terracan has its kit installed, Driving the two cars back-to-back was just more proof that the modern turbodiesel about their Terracan suspension kit we were springs mean the shock absorbers needed to be and is a petrol auto Highlander with 255/70/16 doesn’t give much away to its petrol immediately interested. changed, and the new fronts have significantly tyres Cooper STs that are 25mm taller than counterpart. Sure, the petrol is quicker but The story started back in late 2005 when increased resistance to compression, and a the standard. Our stock Terracan was a diesel you really need to wring its neck to pull away from the oil burner, which is certainly Ironman began to receive a number of requests slightly increased rebound rate. auto Highlander with Hyundai’s Trek’n’Tow no slouch and the preferred towing engine from owners of Terracans for replacement The rear suspension was also matched, and suspension upgrade and the standard road due to its greater torque lower in the rev suspension, all of whom used the vehicle for the Ironman kit includes a pair of linear coil tyres in 255/65/16. The T&T kit comprises range. The diesel hangs onto gears longer for the same reason, and the engine note towing. Ironman got hold of a Terracan and springs for the live-axle rear that lift the back of stiffer progressive coils for the rear with a is different, not any noisier. Offroad engine tested it to see the problem for themselves, and end by 40mm, with a pair of re-rated shock 25mm lift, new rear bumpstops and four new braking is better, and the turbo boost is it was quickly decided the suspension was too absorbers. The front of the Terracan is an shocks. This in itself is a huge improvement well masked so the power is controllable. Economy? Well, we used 18L/100 in the soft, in particular the front end. independent suspension setup, so a lift there over the standard Terracan suspension, and the diesel, and 26L/100 in the petrol, but those The solution was a thicker torsion bar at is just a matter of cranking the torsion bars up fact the kit exists at all indicates even Hyundai figures reflect hard driving and low range the front, now some 25 percent stiffer than the by 20mm or so. thinks the stock suspension isn’t up to the work, so only serve to show the difference between the two. Hyundai’s own figures original and the first after-market front spring So that’s the theory – a slight lift, stiffer mark for heavy use. Hyundai says the special of 10L/100 and 15L/100 are far more for the Terracan. That fixed the bouncy front suspension and different damping rates. To bumpstops actually form part of the suspension realistic, so you go much further between end, but the various components of vehicle’s see how it worked in practice we took two by in effect adding another progressive layer fills on diesel. So from a driver’s point of view the diesel is definitely the go, but what about the hip pocket? The diesel is $2000 or 4 1 nearly 5 percent more expensive off the showroom but won’t depreciate as quickly; say the petrol loses 58 percent of its value after four years and the diesel 55 percent, so the diesel resale is about $2100 better. Then you’re only $100 ahead, and behind if you consider $2000 has been tied up in a car. Economy-wise, assuming 10L/100 and 15L/100, 15,000km a year and $1.45/$1.40 for fuel you’ll need four years to make the extra purchase price worthwhile. Servicing is the other factor, and the intervals are the same at 15,000km with prices being similar. So all things considered, the diesel isn’t the obvious choice for money saving it might first appear to be and it could take years to recoup the extra initial outlay.

3 & 4. The black torsion bar is connected to the chassis at one end and a pivoting A-arm at the other. 1 & 2. Trek’n’Tow on the left, Ironman on the right. The extra wheel travel at the rear is apparent on the Ironman upgrade. No extra at the front.

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1 & 2. Both cars loaded with 200kg in the to the coils. That’s an interesting philosophy, back of each vehicle and measured the height rear and a 130kg downforce on the towbar. given most people try and avoid bottoming from the bottom of the rim to the bottom of the out suspension as it’s not exactly comfortable flare. The standard vehicle was 701mm front ade Suspension terms r for the occupants, good for the vehicle or does and 704mm rear, and the Ironman 705 and Torsion bar – a spring that is a long bar, much for the handling. 731. Then we hooked up a Tvan we’d been lent fixed to the chassis at one end and to a pivoting arm at the other that also mounts Aftermarket suspension normally runs which was set for a 130kg towball downforce, the front wheel. The spring effect comes at around $900-$1300, so the Ironman and the measurements changed to 709/680, from the twisting effect of the bar. suspension is good value at $845 but the and 712/713. Already the stock car was nose- Shock absorber – really misnamed, T&T kit is extremely expensive at $2765. You up, and although the Terracan is rated for up to as springs absorb the bump and shock absorbers dampen the resulting rebound, must remember that the T&T kit is factory 250kg towball downforce we wouldn’t want acan suspension upg stopping the car kangarooing down the road. engineered and backed and thus covered by to tow a trailer that heavy. Ground clearance rr Linear and progressive coils the factory Hyundai five-year warranty. Fitting for offroading is also compromised with the – linear coils compress at a constant rate. is extra on both kits. hitch near to the ground, and the risk of the Progressives compress easily to begin with and then increase resistance. To make the test realistic we loaded around suspension bottoming out is increased. hyundai te 200kg of water jerries and recovery kit into the On to the road and both cars dragged the

You notice less body roll onroad.

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Terracan Accessories trailer quickly off the line, but once the corners same story. When the suspension wasn’t A bit of research showed there are a and undulations start coming up the Ironman working hard the stocker was adequate, but surprisingly large number of accessories. available for the Terracan. The list isn’t car had an advantage. The Terracan’s steering the bigger the pothole, the heavier the load and definitive, but gives an idea: is generally a little too sensitive for road the quicker the pace the better the Ironman • Snorkel from Airtech (diesel and petrol) • Bullbars from TJM, ECB and Parkside undulations, and this combined with the soft felt, as it was able to cancel out bumps with • Cargo barrier from Milford ride doesn’t inspire driver confidence when more authority. • Dual battery via TJM, Ironman or Opposite Lock going around uneven corners. The weight on Into low range and it was all advantage • Rear drawers from Offroad Systems the back also accentuates the pitching effect Ironman, even after we allowed for the Cooper (others could fabricate too) when braking. With stiffer suspension and a tyres. Firstly the extra clearance helped with • Long range tank (120L) from Opposite Lock (petrol and diesel) more level vehicle, the Ironman car felt more approach, ramp and departure angles, especially • Suspension components from Ironman, stable and far less upset by the trailer and the when the weight of the car was mostly on one TJM, Koni, King, Pedders and ARB • Front locker from ARB state of the road. wheel. Secondly, there’s a small, but significant • Sidesteps from ARB With the trailer disconnected we departed on amount of extra travel from the back end with • Spare wheel carrier from K&N 4WD a run through the suburbs to a freeway, through the Ironman kit (see photos 1,2 pg 68). (requires towbar) some windy bitumen hills, down a fast dirt road The conclusion at the end of the day’s test The stock tyres are passenger- construction 255/65/16 which isn’t a and then into some low range tracks. was clear. Firstly, it reinforced our view that the common size, but there are light-truck Just easing along In the suburbs, we Terracan is a damn good 4WD for the money options, and 245/70/16 is only 11mm taller Roofracks from Opposite Lock and Thule preferred the Trek’n’Tow setup which is softer (see Overlander’s Best of the Best Awards, last (the roof load limit is 100kg, although the over things like train tracks at low speeds. But issue). Should you change the suspension? Like factory crossbars are only 34kg). That’s enough for a decent touring setup once up to speed in the twisties the Ironman most 4WDs set up for offroading or towing, and with some of that kit the Terracan car became the better drive. As it’s stiffer there the answer is yes and very definitely so in this would be a fine touring vehicle we’d is less body roll, despite the slight lift, and the case. We’d take the Ironman kit over the T&T be happy taking anywhere in Australia. Obviously non-vehicle specific accessories front end is less disturbed by bumps, although not only because of the price, but because it like driving lights and a UHF radio can there’s still room for improvement. The improves rough-terrain capability and is a easily be fitted. As the Terracan shares some handling is improved too – while the Terracan heavier-duty setup more suited to the rigours mechanical components with the second- drives reasonably well it’s not the sharpest of of towing or 4WD touring. generation Pajero some components are handlers, especially in the steering department. For more info visit Ironman Suspension interchangeable, an example being the ARB locker. Search around and don’t be The Ironman car had less understeer, and keen (www.ironmansuspension.com) and thanks to afraid to ask, as manufacturers respond to drivers will appreciate this trait. Track Trailer (www.tracktrailer.com.au) for demand; that’s how the Ironman kit was developed in the first place. On high-speed dirt roads it was much the loan of the Tvan.

Increasing approach, ramp and departure angles is a good thing offroad.

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